title: Rapid detection of bacterial resistance to antibiotics using AFM cantilevers as nanomechanical sensors.
abstract: The widespread misuse of drugs has increased the number of multiresistant bacteria, and this means that tools that can rapidly detect and characterize bacterial response to antibiotics are much needed in the management of infections. Various techniques, such as the resazurin-reduction assays, the mycobacterial growth indicator tube or polymerase chain reaction-based methods, have been used to investigate bacterial metabolism and its response to drugs. However, many are relatively expensive or unable to distinguish between living and dead bacteria. Here we show that the fluctuations of highly sensitive atomic force microscope cantilevers can be used to detect low concentrations of bacteria, characterize their metabolism and quantitatively screen (within minutes) their response to antibiotics. We applied this methodology to Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus, showing that live bacteria produced larger cantilever fluctuations than bacteria exposed to antibiotics. Our preliminary experiments suggest that the fluctuation is associated with bacterial metabolism.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Physique de la Matière Vivante, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland. giovanni.longo@epfl.ch
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Longo
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Alonso-Sarduy
authors.forename: L Marques
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Rio
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bizzini
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Trampuz
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Notz
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Dietler
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kasas
mesh_terms: D000667:Ampicillin / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D015374:Biosensing Techniques / Q000295:instrumentation*; D004352:Drug Resistance, Microbial; D004867:Equipment Design; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D004927:Escherichia coli Infections / Q000188:drug therapy; D006801:Humans; D050296:Microbial Viability; D018625:Microscopy, Atomic Force / Q000295:instrumentation*; D036103:Nanotechnology / Q000295:instrumentation*; D013203:Staphylococcal Infections / Q000188:drug therapy; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D000667:Ampicillin